Gushing Springs

Gushing Springs:

Jesus did not say that the water that He gives us would become stagnant like the Dead Sea. On the contrary He said, “but those waters that I give him shall be springs of waters in him that shall spring up into eternal life.”  A spring isn’t self-serving.  It gushes forth providing water for the purpose of life beyond itself.

In a previous post I wrote, “Benefits bereft of bonafide Baptism beget bogus Beliefs and busted Behaviors.”

If you’re wondering what in the world that means… you are not alone.

In Ephesians chapters 1-3 Paul wrote about some BENEFITS of being a Christian.

• Chosen by the Father (1:3-6)

• Redeemed by the Son (1:7-12)

• Sealed by the Spirit (1:13-14)

• Privy to God’s wisdom & revelation (1:15-23)

• Our position – individually & corporately (2:1-3:13)

Ephesians chapter 3 wraps up with a prayer for a true, tangible, vivid, living, and authentically CORPORATE relationship with God as Christ’s bride – the Church.

“I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God… to him be glory in the church…”

Paul was saying, in part, that:

• Knowing God eclipses mere individual knowledge.

• Experiencing God transcends common individual experience.

• Being filled with God exceeds our individual capacity and gushes forth.

Benefits (chosen, redeemed, sealed, etc.) bereft of baptism (viz. identification with the Father – will of God, with the Son – the obedience of God, and with the Spirit – the power and presence of God) beget bogus beliefs and busted behaviors.

The church in Colossae (book of Colossians) wanted all the benefits of Christianity, but it was a church bereft of authentic baptism in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  One expert source notes, “The nature of the Colossian heresy (where they were missing the boat) has been a matter of debate… It was apparently a religious system that combined elements from Hellenistic Greek speculation, Jewish legalism, and Oriental mysticism… the heresy denied the sufficiency of Christ (Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Charts and Maps. 1996, 397.)”

In today’s churches we are big on preaching the BENEFITS of Christianity, but as Paul points out – those benefits are only truly realized within the context of identification with maturing church.  That’s what BAPTISM is all about.

Benefits bereft of bonafide Baptism beget bogus Beliefs and busted Behaviors.

The waters of baptism are a one-time picture/symbol of our ongoing immersion in the Father’s will, the Son’s obedience, and the Spirit’s power and presence. Our position (made right with God) is validated through practice (doing) and the privileges of Christianity come with responsibilities.  That’s not a works-based salvation – it’s a gracious litmus-test of faith given by Jesus so that we wouldn’t be deceived into a participating in a religious system rather than into a true relationship with God.

Throughout Scripture the Bible repeatedly warns and teaches us not to be deceived:

“many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.”

“such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people.”

“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.”

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”

Following Ephesians chapters 1-3 Paul tells us that BENEFITS are realized in serving – that our BEHAVIORS.  In 4:11-13 we read, “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity…”

There are four categories given here that all the members of the Body of Christ fall into:

• Apostles – ‘sent ones,’ which might best translate today as those who have sensed a call from God to serve as missionaries or church planters.  We do not use the term “Apostle” today since it is typically reserved for those few individuals who had a ‘face-to-face’ experience with the risen Christ.  Today ‘sent ones’ are more readily identified as missionaries and planters.

• Prophets – Throughout the Old Testament the prophets were people who were given a direct message from God to speak to a specific audience.  The modern day equivalent would be someone who has been called to ‘preach’ God’s Word.  Preaching is quite simply heralding God’s message, which can run the full spectrum of Christian theology.  Preaching is not ‘teaching’ per se, as teaching typically involves back-and-forth dialogue, explanation, and different techniques to help the target audience to understand.

• Evangelists – An evangelist is anyone who shares the Good News (Greek: εὐαγγέλιον) of Jesus Christ with people.  It differs from preaching as its focus is specifically on humanity’s depravity and inability to rescue ourselves - both in light of God’s grace in Christ, which covers over all our sin and brings us back into right relationship with our Creator through the Cross of Christ.

• Pastor/Teachers – The word ‘pastor’ means shepherd.  Here in Eph 4 Paul welds the two terms together into one role, the pastor/teacher.  Shepherds are intimately involved in the care of the flock.  A great example of a NON-pastor/teacher was Jonah the prophet.  Jonah ‘preached’ to the Ninevites saying, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” This was not a message of love, grace, compassion, or mercy – yet God used it to change their hearts! The very next words we read in Jonah 3:5 are “The Ninevites believed God.” Repentance ensued and an entire city was redeemed!  Jonah was not a pastor/teacher.  Jonah demonstrated hatred and resentment toward both the Ninevites and God for their salvation from eternal destruction.

All of the saints, i.e. Christians, fall into one (or more) of those categories.  We are all called to be evangelists without exception.  Some are gifted as pastor/teachers to care for and watch over God’s flock.  Some are gifted with the ability to be powerful/impactful preachers – heralding God’s word from behind a podium, microphone, etc.  And some are called as missionaries and church planters – not just to make disciples and build up the church locally, but they have experienced God’s call to make disciples and plant new churches abroad – frequently in places where Christ has never been known and the Bible has never been translated into a local language.

But all of these were given “to equip his people for works of service.” All the benefits, gifts, perks, and privileges we receive as Christians were never meant just for us personally or individually.

Your salvation is not your own.

As Paul wrote in 1Cor6:20 “You have been bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.”

Benefits bereft of bonafide Baptism beget bogus Beliefs and busted Behaviors.

Receiving the benefits of God apart from identification with the Father’s will, the Son’s obedience, and the Spirit’s power & presence begets twisted beliefs and selfish behaviors.  That’s what was going down in Colossae – and that’s what is going down in many churches in America and across the globe.

If we’re not actively involved in being developed or serving as disciples – FOR THE PURPOSE OF – equipping “his people for works of service,” then we’re missing the boat entirely.

As noted above, the Bible commands us ““Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”

Since everything you’ve been given in Christ, i.e. the BENEFITS, are for the purpose of equipping his people for works of service, i.e. the BEHAVIORS, then let us not deceive ourselves into merely listening; instead let us be intimately identified with, i.e. BAPTIZED, the will of the Father (Gen 12:3), the obedience of the Son (Matt 28:18-20), and the power and presence of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8).

I pray that you are lovingly challenged by the truth of God’s word and that your relationship with God is cultivated, transformed, and strengthened as the gracious privilege of equipping “his people for works of service.”

Blessings,

-Kevin